Robert Miles Reiff v. United States

Robert Miles Reiff, incarcerated in the federal correctional institution at Lompoc, California, under a judgment of conviction based on a plea of guilty, moved in the district court for an order removing him from Lompoc to the county jail in Los Angeles. The purpose of seeking such removal was to enable him to prosecute appropriate proceedings to obtain release on the ground that he is in custody under a judgment which is invalid. At the same time he moved for leave to use the Los Angeles County law library to perfect his intended legal action and for appointment of counsel to assist him.

The district court, treating the motion as an application under 28 U.S.C.A. § 2255 , denied the same. Reiff moved in the district court for a correction of this order, asserting that his motion was not intended as a section 2255 application. No action was taken on the latter motion. Reiff thereupon appealed to this court and moved in the district court for bail pending appeal. The district court de nied this motion and Reiff has renewed it here.

Except in some exceptional circumstance such as existed in Tinkoff v. Zerbst, 10 Cir., 80 F.2d 464 , a person convicted of crime who seeks release by…